A  CONCISE  MANUAL 


OF 


Presswork 


by  f.  w.  Thomas 


The  series  of  articles  which  make  up 
this  pamphlet  originally  appeared  in 
the  Practical  Printer  of  St.  Louis,  Mo. 
By  courtesy  of  that  publication  The 
Inland  Printer  has  been  enabled  to 
purchase  the  copyright  from  the  author 
who  has  revised  and  enlarged  the 
matter  for  republication  here. 


Copyright,  1903 

THE  INLAND  PRINTER  COMPANY 


CHICAGO  AND  NEW  YORK 


Entered  according  to  Act  of  Congress,  in  the  year  1903, 

By  The  Inland  Printer  Company, 

In  the  Office  of  the  Librarian  of  Congress,  at  Washington. 


.ZZ 


PREFACE 


T3£>c_ 


Believing  that  there  should  be  within 
the  reach  of  every  platen  pressman  a 
thorough  yet  concise  treatise  covering  all 
of  the  essentials  of  the  theory  and  practice 
of  his  work,  and  believing  that  such  a  work 
would  meet  with  a  cordial  reception  from 
workers  who  wish  to  add  to  their  proficiency 
and  from  employers  who  wish  to  assist 
their  platen  pressmen  in  acquiring  more 
correct  methods,  the  author  has  en¬ 
deavored  to  meet  this  want  with  what  is 
here  written. 

It  is  published  with  the  earnest  hope 
that  it  may  prove  a  practical  help  in  the 
every-day  work  of  the  platen  pressmen 
whom  it  reaches. 

F.  W.  Thomas. 


15267 


1000.  3-13-03* 


Digitized  by  the  Internet  Archive 
in  2017  with  funding  from 

University  of  Illinois  Urbana-Champaign  Alternates 


https://archive.org/details/concisemanualofpOOthom 


CONTENTS 

Bearers  -------  26 

Care  of  the  Press  -  -  -  -  -  26 

Feeding  -------  23 

General  Remarks  ------  7 

• 

Impression  -------  9 

Ink  ---------  21 

Overlaying  -------  16 

Rollers . 19 

Setting  the  Feed  Gauges  -  -  -  -  24 

Special  Troubles  ------  27 

Tympan  --------  11 


Underlaying 


13 


PLATEN  PRESSWORK. 


By  F.  W.  Thomas. 


THE  average  platen  pressman  is  a  graduate  feeder 
who  has  acquired  his  knowledge  of  making 
ready  by  haphazard  observation  of  the  older  hands. 
He  has  learned  to  go  through  the  motions,  often  with¬ 
out  any  competent  instruction  whatever  in  the  reasons 
for  them,  and  often  has  no  appreciation  of  the  prin¬ 
ciples  involved  in  producing  good  presswork. 

These  articles  are  written  with  the  hope  of  aiding 
many  young  pressmen  and  others,  who  are  anxious  to 
advance,  by  giving  practical  methods  and  at  the  same 
time  explaining  the  reasons  or  theory  for  their  use,  so 
that  the  pressman,  understanding  the  whys  and  where¬ 
fores,  may  be  more  capable  of  overcoming  the  many 
difficulties  which  confront  him,  and  which  vary  so 
much  in  detail  that  it  is  impossible  to  cover  all  of  them 
in  any  article. 

Making  ready  is  largely  a  matter  of  correcting 
imperfect  conditions.  It  will  be  of  advantage,  there¬ 
fore,  to  consider  what  ideal  conditions  are,  in  order 
that  we  may  better  study  how  to  remedy  ordinary  con¬ 
ditions  so  as  to  approximate  the  ideal.  If  all  type, 
rules  and  cuts  were  new  and  of  absolutely  uniform 
height;  if  the  bed  and  platen  came  together  perfectly 


8  PLATEN  PRESSWORK 

true  and  without  any  spring,  if  rollers  and  ink  were 
perfect;  then  the  only  make-ready  necessary  would  be 
the  overlaying  of  the  extra  heavy  portions  of  the  print¬ 
ing  —  for  a  flat  surface  is  not  a  correct  printing-surface 
except  when  the  form  consists  entirely  of  type,  and 
the  same  kind  of  type.  The  moment  the  form  consists 
of  some  light  type  and  some  heavy,  or  contains  cuts 
having  some  portions  darker  than  others,  just  that 
moment  must  the  printing-surface,  theoretically  at  least, 
become  uneven,  being  made  higher  for  the  heavy  por¬ 
tions  so  as  to  give  those  parts  more  impression. 

The  conditions  then  that  we  must  strive  for,  in 
order  to  obtain  perfect  printing,  are:  first,  an  adjust¬ 
ment  of  the  press  which  will  result  in  a  square,  even 
impression;  second,  a  uniformly  level  surface  to  the 
type-form ;  third,  a  make-ready  graduated  in  thickness 
so  as  to  give  a  proper  relative  impression  to  all  por¬ 
tions  of  the  form ;  fourth,  a  proper  condition  and  set 
of  the  rollers,  and,  fifth,  suitable  ink. 

With  these  items  properly  taken  care  of,  practically 
perfect  printing  will  result.  If  the  work  is  defective 
in  any  way  it  is  the  pressman’s  best  plan  to  study  care¬ 
fully  just  which  of  these  essentials  is  being  violated, 
so  as  to  apply  the  remedy  in  the  right  place.  A  great 
deal  of  time  is  wasted  in  making  ready  by  failure  to 
follow  this  plan  intelligently.  I  have  seen  pressmen 
work  away  at  the  impression,  when  a  little  observation 
and  thought  would  have  shown  them  that  the  real 
source  of  the  trouble  lay  in  the  lack  of  proper  inking, 
and  I  have  seen  others  putting  on  more  and  more  ink 
when  the  real  fault  was  lack  of  impression.  It  is  a 


IMPRESSION 


9 


great  rule  to  think  while  you  work.  Never  putter  aim¬ 
lessly  at  remedying  defects.  Locate  the  cause ;  then 
you  can  work  intelligently  and  rapidly. 

Taking  up  more  in  detail  the  first  essential,  brings 
us  to  the  consideration  —  as  primarily  in  order  —  of 
the  subject  of 


IMPRESSION. 

Considered  theoretically,  correct  platen  impression 
is  where  the  platen  advances,  in  the  final  movement,  in 
a  direct'  slide  to  the  bed,  touching  with  equal  pressure 
at  every  point  at  the  same  instant.  In  this,  the  Uni¬ 
versal  or  Colt’s  Armory  type  of  press,  it  is  necessary 
to  set  the  impression-screws  but  once,  and  afterward 
the  whole  impression  can  be  regulated  for  all  ordinary 
needs  by  the  action  of  the  adjustable  latches  connected 
with  the  throw-off  device,  or  by  a  slight  variation  in 
the  amount  of  tympan  used. 

In  the  “  clam-shell  ”  style  of  press,  the  platen  is 
hinged  close  to  its  lower  edge.  In  this  type  of  press 
it  is  necessary  to  raise  the  screws  on  the  upper  edge 
of  the  platen  when  any  considerable  increase  is  made 
in  the  amount  of  tympan,  or,  if  the  impression  is 
increased  by  means  of  the  screws,  the  upper  ones  must 
be  advanced  more  than  the  lower  ones.  Some  makes 
of  presses  using  the  “  clam-shell  ”  motion,  notably  the 
Golding  and  the  Perfected  Prouty,  have  special  devices 
for  tilting  the  platen  to  overcome  this  defect. 

In  the  Gordon  type  of  press  this  difficulty  is  reduced 
to  almost  nothing  by  carrying  the  hinging-point  nearly 
to  the  floor.  This  brings  the  top  and  bottom  of  the 


IO 


PLATEN  PRESSWORK 


platen  and  bed  together  with  so  nearly  a  sliding  motion 
that  it  is  seldom  necessary  to  change  the  screws.  This 
is  another  of  those  things,  however,  that  pressmen  differ 
about;  but  if  you  will  go  into  any  good-sized  shop, 
equipped  with  a  proper  complement  of  presses,  where 
all  jobs  can  be  put  on  machines  adapted  to  them,  there 
you  will  find  an  iron-clad  rule  that  the  impression- 
screws  are  to  be  let  alone.  On  the  other  hand,  go  into 
some  small  shop  where  they  try  to  run  everything, 
from  an  envelope-corner  to  a  io  by  15  bill,  on  a  10  by 
15  Gordon  press,  and  there  you  will  perceive  the  man 
who  is  always  “  monkeying  ”  with  the  impression- 
screws.  And  he  is  all  right  in  doing  it,  not  because  it 
is  the  right  way,  but  because  he  is  doing  with  his  press 
what  it  never  was  built  to  do,  and  he  has  to  resort  to 
really  incorrect  makeshifts  to  do  the  work.  If  a  press¬ 
man  has  to  do  such  a  wide  variety  of  work  on  one 
press  of  the  Gordon  type,  he  will  doubtless  have  to 
change  the  impression-screws,  but  he  will  be  a  lucky 
man  indeed  if  he  succeeds  in  keeping  the  platen  true 
with  the  bed  even  a  small  part  of  the  time.  The  right 
way  is  to  have  each  press  adjusted  for  the  class  of  work 
that  should  go  on  it,  and  then  never  touch  the  screws. 
And  in  this  connection  it  will  not  be  amiss  to  caution 
pressmen  not  to  put  too  heavy  forms  on  their  platen 
presses.  Manufacturers  delight  in  claiming  that  their 
presses  will  print  a  single  line  or  a  full  form.  And 
probably  they  will.  You  can  doubtless  lift  five  hun¬ 
dred  pounds,  but  it  will  strain  your  back.  A  solid  form 
1  o  by  15  inches  takes  about  five  tons  pressure  to  print 
it.  Now  look  at  the  quarter-medium  Gordon,  and  ask 


TYMPAN 


II 


yourself  if  it  ought  to  be  expected  to  deliver  eighteen 
hundred  or  fifteen  hundred,  or  even  one  thousand,  five- 
ton  blows  in  an  hour.  A  good,  safe  rule  is  to  put  every 
platen  job  on  a  press  with  a  chase  twice  the  size  of 
the  actual  form,  if  possible.  If  you  are  compelled  to 
put  on  a  full  form,  use  a  fairly  soft  tympan,  plenty  of 
ink,  as  light  an  impression  as  possible,  and  run  your 
press  at  a  moderate  speed  only. 

All  platen-press  forms  should  be  locked  a  little 
below  the  center  of  the  chase. 

TYMPAN. 

The  amount  and  character  of  tympan  t’o  be  used  for 
each  job  is  a  matter  which  calls  for  careful  considera¬ 
tion. 

The  soft  tympan,  being  more  elastic,  accommodates 
itself  somewhat  to  the  inequalities  of  the  form  and  less 
making  ready  is  required  than  with  a  hard  tympan.  It 
is,  however,  much  more  wearing  on  the  type,  especially 
on  long  runs.  I  believe  it  should  be  used  only  on 
dodgers  and  the  cheapest  class  of  work,  or  where  the 
worn,  rounded  condition  of  the  face  of  the  type  renders 
it  necessary. 

An  especially  soft  tympan,  as  a  sheet  of  blotting- 
paper  or  a  thin  rubber  blanket,  topped  with  a  number 
of  sheets  of  print,  can  be  employed  to  advantage  in 
printing  envelopes  when  the  printing  runs  across  the 
gummed  portions,  as  this  will  tend  to  save  the  type  if 
it  strikes  a  hard  lump  of  mucilage. 


12 


PLATEN  PRESSWORK 


Hard  tympan  is  t’he  right  thing  for  all  good  work  — 
one  sheet  of  hard  pressboard  and  three  to  five  sheets  of 
good  print,  with  a  top  sheet  of  manila,  or,  better  yet, 
all  manila  instead  of  part  print.  Such  a  tympan  stands 
up  for  long  runs.  It’  does  not  wear  the  face  of  the  type 
off  rounding.  It  shows  less  impression  on  the  back 
of  the  sheet  than  does  the  soft  tympan  and  gives  a 
cleaner,  sharper  print.  In  printing  on  linen  and  other 
harsh  papers  an  especially  hard  tympan  is  necessary. 
In  taking  a  first  impression,  care  should  be  taken 
not  to  have  on  t’oo'  much  tympan-paper,  as  it  only 
injures  type  and  strains  the  press,  and  an  impression 
taken  too  strong  is  not  as  good  a  guide  for  making 
ready  as  one  that  is  a  little  light.  Start  light,  and  add 
tympan  until  the  general  run  of  the  form  has  sufficient 
impression. 

The  tympan  consisting  of  one  pressboard  and  five 
or  six  sheets  of  manila,  as  recommended  above,  is  for 
presses  of  the  Gordon  type,  on  which  the  impression  is 
not  sufficiently  accurate  and  rigid  to  make  it  a  good 
practice  to  use  a  still  harder  tympan. 

On  presses  of  the  Universal  or  Colt’s  Armory 
type,  where  the  bed  and  platen  come  together  absolutely 
true,  and  in  which  the  impression  is  more  rigid,  I 
would  dispense  altogether  with  the  pressboard  and  use 
about  five  thicknesses  of  (24  by  36  35-pound)  manila. 
On  this  type  of  machine  the  rollers  are  set  more  accu¬ 
rately  than  on  most  Gordon  presses,  and,  so  far  as 
possible,  all  make-ready,  except  cut  overlays,  should 
be  by  means  of  underlays. 


UNDERLAYING 


13 


Having  the  impression  properly  adjusted  and  a 
suitable  tympan  selected,  the  next  step  is  to  bring  the 
face  of  the  form  to  a  uniform  height  by 

UNDERLAYING. 

This  consists  in  applying  varying  thicknesses  of 
paper  behind  portions  of  the  form,  for  the  purpose  of 
bringing  type,  rules  and  cuts  that  may  be  low,  up  to 
the  general  level  of  the  whole  form.  Type  that  is 
old  and  worn  needs  underlaying,  for,  if  it  is  badly 
worn,  it  will  not  be  thoroughly  inked  by  the  rollers, 
as  the  newer  and  higher  type  will  serve  to  hold  the 
rollers  away  from  the  worn  letters,  which  really  need 
good  roller-pressure  more  than  the  new  type.  This  is 
especially  true  if  the  worn  type  or  rule  is  very  close  to 
other  matter,  and  still  more  so  if  the  rollers  have  lost 
some  of  their  suction.  Good  rollers  will  cover  many 
such  defects,  but  if  they  are  hard,  then  especially  must 
the  greatest  care  be  exercised  to  underlay  the  form  to 
a  perfectly  even  surface.  Many  times  cuts  are  low  in 
the  center  or  at  a  corner,  or  on  one  whole  side.  An 
underlay  is  the  only  logical  remedy  for  these  defects, 
for  they  are  defects  in  the  leveling  of  the  form,  and 
should  be  remedied  by  a  plan  that  will  correct  both  the 
uneven  impression  and  the  uneven  inking  at  the  same 
time.  It  is  a  curious  thing,  but  a  fact,  that  an  inch 
circle  of  paper  behind  the  center  of  a  wood-base  cut 
four  inches  square  will  increase  the  impression  of  the 
center  while  making  no  perceptible  difference  on  the 
edges,  and  this  increase  in  impression  is  gradual  from 


H 


PLATEN  PRESSWORK 


the  center  out,  which  result  would  be  very  difficult  to 
obtain  by  overlaying.  Some  pressmen  advocate  under¬ 
lays  for  pretty  much  everything;  others  contend  that 
overlaying  is  the  only  thing.  The  contention  is  a  good 
deal  like  the  rivalry  of  the  Homeopaths  and  Allopaths, 
and  we  must  conclude  that  in  presswork,  as  in  medicine, 
there  are  good  points  in  both  systems.  The  writer's 
belief  is  that  the  true  object  of  underlaying  is  to  bring 
the  form  to  a  level  surface  and  that’  overlaying  is  to 
provide  for  that  variation  in  impression  necessitated  by 
the  varying  character  of  different  portions  of  the  form, 
including  the  bringing  up  of  the  solid  portions  of  the 
cut’s.  Undoubtedly  this  is  the  correct  theory,  and,  as  a 
rule,  I  believe  it  to  be  the  best  plan  to  follow  in  practice. 

If  a  line  of  type  or  cut  is  very  low,  it  will  not  ink, 
and  must  be  brought  up  by  an  underlay ;  but  if  it  is  a 
very  heavy  line  and  needs  still  more  impression,  it  is 
manifestly  incorrect’  to  further  underlay  it,  as  that  may 
cause  it  to  hold  the  rollers  off  from  adjoining  lighter 
type.  The  additional  impression  should  be  given  by 
overlaying  on  the  tympan.  In  practice,  it  may  make 
no  difference  whether  a  tissue-paper  is  placed  behind  the 
form  or  on  the  tympan,  but  the  influence  of  habit  is 
powerful,  and  a  habit  of  doing  things  correctly  is  of 
great  value  to  a  workman.  The  pressman  who  always 
chooses  either  an  underlay  or  overlay  according  to  cor¬ 
rect  principles,  whether  it  is  a  cardboard  or  tissue-paper, 
is  forming  a  habit  which  will  go  far  toward  making  him 
a  better  workman. 

A  form  requiring  any  amount  of  make-ready,  if 
prepared  entirely  by  overlays,  will  not  print  uniformly 


UNDERLAYING 


15 


for  a  long  run,  as  those  portions  of  the  tympan  having 
the  greatest  thickness  of  overlays  will  pound  down 
most  and  ultimately  show  up  light,  while,  if  the  excess 
impression  is  applied  in  the  shape  of  hard  paper  or 
hard  cardboard  underlays,  this  will  not  occur.  Then, 
also,  too  many  overlays  are  more  than  apt  to  make  the 
tympan  baggy  and  loose  in  spots,  causing  slurring. 
One  of  the  most  frequent  necessities  for  underlaying 
arises  in  tabular  work  where  the  rules  are  high.  In 
this  and  in  other  cases  where  the  underlaying  is  intri¬ 
cate  and  needs  to  be  accurately  done  it  is  better,  and 
will  save  time,  to  take  the  form  out  of  the  press,  stand  it 
on  edge  where  it  can  be  handily  gotten  at,  and  paste 
the  underlays  on  carefully  with  a  little  flour  paste.  A 
lick  of  the  tongue  on  a  piece  of  paper  is  a  poor  expedi¬ 
ent.  The  underlay  is  likely  to  come  off  or  work  out  of 
place  while  the  job  is  running  and  result  in  a  lot  of 
defective  work.  Mucilage  is  bad,  too,  as  it  hardens  and 
forms  a  coating  on  the  feet  of  the  type,  which  does  not 
come  off  with  ordinary  washing  and  which  makes  them 
high  in  the  next  job.  The  custom  of  pasting  on  under¬ 
lays  simply  by  loosening  the  chase-hook  and  tipping  the 
chase  forward  is  a  pernicious  one,  for,  while  it  is  doubt¬ 
less  well  enough  in  some  cases,  it’  soon  becomes  a  habit, 
and  it  is  simply  impossible  to  place  complicated  under¬ 
lays  accurately  in  this  fashion,  and  no  end  of  time  is 
wasted  in  moving  them  when  wrongly  pasted  on.  On 
most  makes  of  job  presses  there  is  no  provision  as  there 
is  on  cylinder  presses  for  setting  the  rollers  so  as  to 
bear  with  varying  pressure  on  the  type,  and  when 
rollers  are  very  old  and  shrunken  it  may  be  necessary 


1 6  PLATEN  PRESSWORK 

to  put  a  sheet  of  paper  or  even  a  cardboard  sheet  behind 
the  whole  form.  Of  course,  if  the  impression  has 
already  been  adjusted,  a  corresponding  decrease  must 
be  made  on  the  tympan.  This  is,  however,  a  makeshift. 
New  rollers  would  be  a  better  remedy.  While  speak¬ 
ing  of  the  matter  of  leveling  up  the  form,  I  want  to 
suggest  one  exception,  and  that  is  half-tone  plates, 
especially  if  they  are  vignetted.  It  is  my  experience 
that  a  half-tone  prints  best  with  light  roller-pressure, 
and  I  favor  having  them  a  trifle  less  than  type-high  and 
making  up  this  discrepancy  by  extra  overlaying  on  the 
tympan,  not  by  an  underlay.  This  leaves  the  cut  a 
little  lower  than  the  balance  of  the  form,  and  the  rollers 
touch  it  less  heavily.  There  is  less  tendency  for  the 
fine  interstices  of  the  cut  to  fill  up  with  ink  and  to  print 
smutty.  This  is  particularly  true  of  the  edges  of 
vignetted  half-tones.  This  plan  also  assists  in  the  final 
make-ready,  as  will  be  explained  more  in  detail  later. 

When  the  form  has  been  brought  to  a  level  surface 
by  means  of  careful  underlaying  the  next  step  is 

OVERLAYING. 

For  overlaying  type  and  line-cuts,  use  tissue,  French 
folio,  or  thin  manila,  or  book  paper,  according  to  the 
amount  of  extra  impression  required.  Many  etchings, 
and  practically  all  half-tones,  need  “  cut  overlays  ”  to 
bring  up  the  darker  portions.  For  this  work  thin 
French  folio  is  best,  and  for  the  relatively  small  cuts 
ordinarily  run  on  platen  presses  it  is  rarely  advanta¬ 
geous  to  use  more  than  two  thicknesses  of  folio  —  one 


OVERLAYING 


17 


sheet  on  the  medium  shadows  and  an  additional  one  on 
the  very  heavy  places. 

These  overlays  should  be  pasted  lightly  on  the  very 
bottom  sheet,  the  upper  sheets  being  loosened  from  the 
top  tympan-bale  and  rolled  down,  and  an  impression 
taken  on  this  lower  sheet  to  use  as  a  guide  in  securing 
the  overlays,  some  extra,  loose  sheets  being  temporarily 
placed  under  this  bottom  sheet  when  taking  this  impres¬ 
sion,  to  compensate  for  the  sheets  turned  down.  The 
sheet  of  pressboard  should  be  taken  from  beneath  and 
put  on  top  of  the  sheet’  with  the  overlays  on  it,  and  the 
extra  top  sheets  that  were  rolled  down  pulled  up  over 
this.  It  is  not  necessary  to  shift  the  pressboard  above 
the  overlays  with  type-forms,  but  with  half-tones  and 
most  other  engravings  the  edges  of  the  overlays  are 
likely  to  show  in  the  printing  unless  this  is  done.  I  have 
stated  that  in  securing  an  impression  on  the  bottom 
sheet  of  the  tympan  the  upper  sheets  should  be 
loosened  from  the  top  tympan-bale  and  rolled  down, 
because  that  is  the  method  I  have  found  most  in  vogue, 
and  most  pressmen  claim  that  there  is  danger  of  losing 
the  register,  if  the  sheets  are  loosened  from  the  bottom 
bale  after  the  feed  guides  have  been  set. 

Personally,  I  do  not  think  so.  Loosening  the  sheets 
from  the  top  bale  and  rolling  them  down  makes  a 
clumsy  roll  at  the  lower  edge  of  the  platen ;  the  sheets 
rolled  down  are  likely  to  become  creased  or  spoiled  in 
taking  the  impression  for  overlaying,  and  it  is  an  awk¬ 
ward  proceeding  at  best.  In  my  own  pressroom  we 
invariably  loosen  the  top  sheets  from  the  bottom  bale. 
They  can  then  be  turned  off  from  the  face  of  the  platen 


i8 


PLATEN  PRESSWORK 


entirely,  though  still  secured  by  the  upper  tympan-bale. 
In  this  way,  the  sheets,  when  put  back,  need  not  show  a 
wrinkle  ;  and,  though  we  do  a  great  deal  of  very  close 
register  work,  we  have  no  trouble  with  the  gauges 
being  drawn  out  of  position  in  this  way.  An  abso¬ 
lutely  taut  tympan  is  one  of  the  prime  essentials  for 
good  presswork. 

The  impression  on  the  bottom  tympan-sheet  should 
never  be  taken,  nor  any  intricate  overlaying  done,  until 
the  make-up  and  spacing  of  the  form  has  been  O.  K.’d. 
Overlays,  to  be  of  any  use  whatever,  must  register 
exactly  with  the  position  of  the  form  for  which  they  are 
intended. 

In  the  first  part  of  these  articles  I  advocated  having 
half-tones  a  little  less  than  type-high,  and  compensating 
for  it  on  the  tympan.  In  the  case  of  vignetted  half¬ 
tones  worked  in  with  type-forms,  I  have  noticed  that 
if  the  plates  are  flush  type-high,  it  is  necessary  not  only 
to  overlay  the  dark  portions  of  the  cut,  but  also  to 
cut  away  on  the  tympan  below  the  vignetting,  as  the 
natural  tendency  of  the  sheet  that  is  being  printed  to 
bulge  up  around  the  edge  of  the  cut  will  result  in  too 
heavy  an  impression  on  the  vignetting.  Even  with  this 
precaution,  although  all  actual  impression  is  removed 
from  the  vignetting,  the  paper  still  touches  that  portion 
of  the  cut  more  or  less  roughly,  and  is  very  liable  to 
leave  a  ragged  line  at  the  extreme  edges.  The  beauty 
of  a  vignetted  half-tone  lies  in  the  delicate  shading 
away  of  the  edges.  By  having  the' cut  a  little  low,  and 
building  up  on  the  tympan  to  meet  it,  the  paper  is 


ROLLERS 


19 


forced  out  against  the  solid  portions  of  the  cut’,  but  is 
not  pressed  against  the  edges  at  all. 

In  printing  small  *  half-tones  on  presses  of  the 
Universal  or  Colt’s  Armory  type,  and  using  a  tympan 
of  five  sheets  of  hard  manila  paper,  it  is  seldom  advan¬ 
tageous  t’o  use  anything  more  than  one  thickness  of 
tissue  paper  for  cut  overlays.  Further  overlaying  or 
“  patching  ”  as  it  is  technically  called,  will,  of  course, 
be  necessary  to  remedy  any  hollow  spot’s  in  the  cuts,  but 
a  single  tissue  is  usually  sufficient  for  a  cut  overlay  and 
that  only  on  the  darkest  parts  of  the  cut.  I  have  found 
this  method  secures  better  results  than  more  elaborate 
overlays,  or  those  made  of  heavier  paper. 

The  matter  of  cut  overlays  is  often  much  overdone 
in  platen  presswork  by  pressmen  who  are  prejudiced 
by  the  heavier  overlays  used  to  advantage  in  cylinder 
presswork. 

It  is  often  necessary  to  cut  away  the  tympan  in 
places  to  keep  high  rules,  cuts,  etc.,  from  showing  an 
undue  impression,  but  this  should  be  done  as  little  as 
possible.  High  cuts  had  better  be  planed  off  on  the 
bottom,  especially  if  very  high,  for  even  if  the  tympan 
is  cut  out  t'o  remedy  the  matter  of  impression,  they  are 
still  too  high  in  the  form  and  may  fill  up  with  ink,  or, 
if  they  have  sharp  corners,  may  cut  the  rollers. 

ROLLERS. 

Some  job  presses  are  provided  with  two  sets  of 
roller-wheels,  one  smaller  than  the  other,  to  be  used 
when  rollers  become  shrunken.  But  most  presses  are 
not’  so  equipped,  and  it  is  questionable  if  the  idea 


20 


PLATEN  PRESSWORK 


amounts  to  much.  When  rollers  have  shrunken  enough 
to  need  such  a  remedy  they  have  probably  lost  their 
suction,  and  the  best  thing  to  do  is  to  get  new  ones. 

Rollers  should  be  renewed  every  spring  and  fall 
at  least.  Hard  rollers  for  summer  and  soft  for  winter. 
The  pressman  should  try  to  save  his  rollers  as  much  as 
possible.  New  rollers  should  not  be  used  on  damp  days. 

A  roller  that  does  not  take  ink  is  “  green,”  and 
needs  to  be  “  seasoned.”  Seasoning  is  not  a  matter  of 
days  or  weeks  but  of  atmospheric  conditions.  In  dry 
and  especially  in  cold,  dry  weather,  evaporation  is  rapid 
and  rollers  season  quickly.  In  damp,  humid  weather 
they  do  not  season  at  all,  but  get  still  “  greener,”  unless 
kept  covered  with  grease  or  ink. 

If  your  rollers  are  new  and  green  they  should  be 
kept  covered  with  ink  at  night,  in  wet  weather,  and  in 
dry  weather  washed  off  so  the  air  can  get  at  them  at 
night. 

If  your  rollers  are  old  and  dry,  keep  ink  on  them 
on  the  cold  or  dry  nights,  but  clean  them  before 
damp  nights  and  they  will  absorb  moisture. 

An  easy  way  to  remember  this  is  to  bear  in  mind 
that,  practically  speaking,  a  wet  (green)  roller  wants  a 
dry  day  and  a  dry  roller  wants  a  wet  day. 

All  forms  containing  light-faced  rules  should,  if 
possible,  be  locked  so  that  rules  run  crossways  of  the 
press,  parallel  with  the  rollers,  as  in  that  way  they  are 
much  less  likely  to  cut  the  rollers.  As  soon  as  rollers 
get  cut  it  is  impossible  to  clean  them  well  enough  to 
run  delicate  tints  or  bright  red  successfully.  Rollers 
should  be  run  slowly  when  using  stiff  inks  in  hot 


INK 


21 


weather,  for  the  friction  generated  by  fast  running  is 
great,  and  will  melt  down  the  rollers.  Many  valuable 
hints  on  the  care  of  rollers  can  be  obtained  from  the 
pamphlets  issued  by  rollermakers. 

Never  stop  the  press  with  the  rollers  standing  on 
the  type.  If  left  too  long,  the  type  will  leave  perma¬ 
nent  dents  in  the  rollers.  Nor  should  they  be  allowed 
t'o  stand  for  any  length  of  time  resting  on  the  disk,  as 
a  flat  streak  will  be  the  inevitable  result. 

Be  sure,  before  putting  ink  on  the  press  or  in  the 
fountain,  that  every  particle  of  dirt  and  lint  is  removed, 
otherwise  it  mixes  with  the  ink,  gets  into  the  fine  type 
or  cuts  and  makes  them  print  muddy,  or  is  deposited 
on  the  solids  of  cuts  and  large  letters  and  makes  them 
look  speckled. 

When  using  slow-drying  inks,  the  rollers  will  often 
be  benefited  by  leaving  the  ink  on  them  over  night,  as 
explained  before,  but’  extra  quick-drying  colored  inks 
should  not  be  left  on  the  rollers. 

Always  be  extra  careful  to  clean  well  the  ends  of 
the  rollers,  where  they  run  on  the  bearers. 

INK. 

The  primary  rule  for  the  selection  of  the  right  grade 
of  ink  for  all  ordinary  jobs  is,  hard  ink  for  hard  paper 
and  soft  ink  for  soft  paper.  Hard,  stiff  ink  is  the  thing 
for  hard  paper,  for  such  stock  requires  a  heavy  impres¬ 
sion,  and  a  soft  ink  would  simply  be  squeezed  out  from 
between  the  surface  of  the  type  and  the  paper,  and 
make  a  ragged  edge  to  every  letter.  Stiff  ink  can  be 
run  heavier,  as  is  necessary  on  hard  paper,  and  yet  not 


22 


PLATEN  PRESSWORK 


show  up  ragged  on  the  edges  of  the  letters.  Soft’  ink 
is  used  on  soft  paper,  and  for  printing  on  coated  papers, 
as  it  works  easier,  dries  into  the  paper  quicker  and  does 
not  pick  the  coating  off  surfaced  papers. 

The  careful  pressman  will  keep  his  cans  covered 
when  not  in  actual  use,  and  will  never  have  more  than 
one  can  of  the  same  kind  of  ink  open  at’  one  time.  He 
will  carefully  remove  all  skin  that  has  formed  over  the 
ink  before  putting  it  in  the  fountain.  Colored  inks  that 
are  seldom  used  can  be  almost  entirely  prevented  from 
skinning  over  and  drying  out,  by  keeping  half  an  inch 
of  water  in  the  can  on  top  of  the  ink.  Most  inks  that 
are  too  stiff,  or  when  too  cold  to  work  well,  can  be 
reduced  and  made  to  work  more  freely  by  the  addition 
of  a  little  kerosene  oil.  Very  little  is  needed  and  it 
should  be  thoroughly  mixed  with  the  ink  before  it'  is 
put  on  the  press,  if  the  best  results  are  expected.  It 
will,  however,  frequently  dull  the  brilliancy  of  bright 
colors,  and  for  these,  special  reducing-compounds 
should  be  purchased  from  the  inkmaker. 

As  a  matter  of  fact',  the  ink  should  be  bought  for 
the  work  that  is  to  be  done  with  it,  and  not  “  doped  ” 
by  the  pressman.  Inkmaking  is  an  art  of  which  the 
printer  knows  little,  and  usually  he  spoils  more  ink  with 
his  mixtures  than  he  saves.  The  chemical  composition 
of  inks  varies  and  there  is  no  magic  compound  that  will 
reduce  them  all  with  equal  satisfaction.  If  ink  is  not 
as  it  should  be,  it  ought  to  be  returned  to  the  maker. 
He  knows  how  to  fix  it’.  Beyond  a  mild  dose  of  coal 
oil,  vaselin,  regular  reducing-compounds,  linseed  oil, 
or  dryer,  I  do  not  believe  in  the  pressman  doctoring  his 


FEEDING 


23 


inks,  and  even  these  remedies  should  be  used  sparingly 
by  any  but  the  most  experienced. 

In  applying  ink  to  the  press,  it  is  best  to  use  a  small 
hand-roller,  the  ink  being  first  distributed  on  a  slab  or 
piece  of  glass.  For  small  jobs,  it’  may  do  to  put  on  a 
little  at  a  time  with  the  ink-knife,  and  it  should  always 
be  applied  to  the  extreme  left-hand  side  of  the  disk.  If 
good  work  is  desired,  however,  especially  if  the  run  is 
long  or  the  form  is  heavy,  it  is  better  to  use  the  foun¬ 
tain.  Care  should  be  exercised  to  see  that  the  fountain- 
blade  set-screws  are  so  adjusted  as  to  give  a  uniform 
flow  of  ink. 

In  adjusting  the  set-screws  of  a  long  fountain,  the 
center  screws  should  be  tightened  first  and  the  other 
screws  tightened  gradually  from  the  center  to  each  end, 
otherwise  the  blade  is  likely  t’o  become  buckled.  If  a 
fountain  is  to  work  properly  it  must  be  kept  thoroughly 
clean,  not  only  the  inside  but  the  bearings,  and  when  it 
is  put  together  be  sure  that’  the  end  bearings  are  closed 
up  snugly.  Otherwise  the  roller  is  not  securely  held 
and  a  perfect  regulation  of  the  ink  is  impossible. 

FEEDING. 

Rapid,  accurate  feeding  should  be  the  ambition  of 
every  platen  pressman.  It  is  largely  a  matter  of  prac¬ 
tice  —  and  a  knack  which  can  not  be  taught  on  paper, 
but  a  few  hints  will  not  be  out  of  place.  Gauges  should 
be  so  placed  as  to  facilitate  easy  feeding,  the  ones  for 
the  lower  edge  of  the  sheet  not  too  close  to  the  corners. 
The  surface  of  the  tympan  should  be  clean  and  smooth, 
and  an  end-gauge  should  always  be  used.  This  last 


24 


PLATEN  PRESSWORK 


may  bring  a  smile,  but  I  have  seen  any  number  of  print¬ 
ers,  particularly  in  small  towns,  feeding  to  a  mark. 
Cards,  envelopes  and  the  like  should  be  fed  in  straight, 
but  sheets  of  fair  size  should  be  “  flopped/'  that  is,  laid 
on  the  feed-board  wrong  side  up  and  turned  as  they 
are  being  fed  into  the  press.  All  work  should  be 
fed  first  to  the  bottom  gauges  and  then  slid  over 
to  the  end-gauge,  never  jabbed  against  all  of  these 
gauges  at  once.  The  feeder  should  acquire  the  knack 
of  placing  his  sheets  to  the  gauges  lightly.  Dirty 
finger-marks  are  an  abomination.  The  feeder’s  hands 
should  be  kept  clean,  and  care  should  be  taken  in  remov¬ 
ing  sheets  from  the  press  not  to  touch  the  printing.  If 
the  open  space  is  small  or  the  sheets  slippery,  a  small 
piece  of  sandpaper  fastened  to  the  end  of  the  left  fore¬ 
finger  will  be  found  a  great  help.  A  soft  rubber 
thimble  is  better  still. 

The  throw-ofif  lever  is  a  convenience  that  should 
not  be  overworked.  Try  to  acquire  a  good,  even, 
unfailing  “  motion,”  as  does  the  expert  compositor. 
Let’  the  right  hand  be  ready  with  the  sheet  to  place  it  in 
the  press  the  instant  the  platen  is  well  open.  There  is 
then  abundant  time  for  careful  feeding,  without  getting 
rattled  and  constantly  throwing-off.  Always  feed  every 
job  accurately  whether  it  seems  to  need  it  or  not.  Habit 
is  a  great  thing. 

SETTING  THE  FEED-GAUGES. 

The  writer  is  strongly  in  favor  of  the  use  of  quads 
for  feed-gauges,  secured  to  the  tympan  by  the  best 
liquid  glue.  They  possess  the  advantage  of  staying 


SETTING  THE  FEED-GAUGES 


25 


where  they  are  put  and  do  not  injure  any  but  the  top 
sheet  of  the  tympan,  and  by  their  use  all  the  sheets  of 
the  under  tympan.  are  left  free  for  the  insertion  of  other 
sheets,  or  a  card,  or  overlays,  whenever  desired.  Any 
kind  of  pin  that  perforates  the  tympan  is  likely  to  inter¬ 
fere  with  this  free  separation  of  the  sheets,  spoil  the 
under  sheets  by  making  holes  in  them,  and  is  more  than 
likely  to  make  a  bulge  in  the  tympan,  which  should  lie 
absolutely  flat.  The  only  objection  to  quads  is  that 
they  can  not  readily  be  moved  and  this  I  consider  an 
advantage,  for  gauges  should  not  be  moved.  They 
should  be  set'  right  in  the  first  place.  Too  many  press¬ 
men  set  them  by  guess,  and  then  spend  no  end  of  time 
moving  them,  with  attendant  loss  of  stock  and  mutila¬ 
tion  of  the  tympan,  and  with  considerable  uncertainty  as 
to  their  correct  position  when  set.  The  quickest  way 
to  set  gauges  is  to  select  the  longest  straight  line  in  the 
job  and  draw  a  pencil  line  exactly  in  line  with  one  edge 
of  it,  letting  this  pencil  line  be  as  long  as  the  sheet  to 
be  printed.  Then  measure  down  from  this  line  and 
mark  the  point  where  the  lower  edge  of  the  stock 
should  come,  and  there  rule  a  second  line  exactly 
parallel  with  the  first  line.  Don’t  guess  at  making  it 
parallel,  but  measure  an  equal  distance  down  at  each 
extreme  end  of  the  first  line,  and  rule  the  second  line 
through  the  points  so  marked.  Set  the  quads  on  this 
line  and  they  will  be  all  right’.  If  there  is  any  doubt 
about  where  the  end-gauge  should  go,  mark  it  first 
and  then  glue  on  a  quad.  If  the  gripper  needs  to 
extend  over  the  left  margin,  use  a  piece  of  hard  card¬ 
board  with  the  end  bent  up  for  an  end-gauge. 


26 


PLATEN  PRESSWORK 


CARE  OF  THE  PRESS. 

Keep  your  press  clean  and  well  oiled  every  day,  but 
a  little  in  each  hole,  not  in  streams  running  down  the 
machine  and  onto  the  floor.  Look  it  over  now  and  then 
to  see  that  no  bolts  or  nuts  are  coming  loose.  Keep  the 
roller-ways  and  roller-wheels  clean  and  free  from  oil. 
If  your  press  has  a  divided  disk,  don’t  let  the  two  por¬ 
tions  become  stuck  together  with  old,  dry  ink.  Some 
of  that  old  ink  will  work  out  into  light  colors  and  spoil 
them.  Above  all ,  keep  the  surface  of  the  bed  and  platen 
absolutely  clean . 

BEARERS. 

Bearers  on  cylinder  presses  are  supposed  to  assist  in 
sustaining  the  weight  of  the  cylinder  and  to  make  the 
bed  and  cylinder  run  in  unison.  From  this  fact  some 
pressmen  seem  to  think  that  bearers  have  some  such 
office  to  perform  on  a  platen  press.  Under  very  excep¬ 
tional  circumstances,  such  as  a  heavy  cut  worked  con¬ 
siderably  out  of  center,  or  in  using  an  old,  rickety, 
broken-down  press,  it  may  be  necessary  to  use  bearers 
on  a  platen  press  for  the  purpose  of  securing  a  uniform 
impression  or  preventing  the  press  from  slurring,  but 
any  advocacy  of  bearers  that  actually  sustain  impres¬ 
sion,  for  the  ordinary  run  of  work  on  platen  presses,  I 
believe  to  be  most  pernicious.  The  function  of  bearers 
on  plat’en  presses  is  to  insure  the  rollers  turning,  both 
when  they  first  touch  the  form  and  as  they  run  over  it. 
Without  them  the  rollers  are  likely  to  slide  instead  of 
rolling,  especially  before  coming  to  the  type.  Then 
they  bump  against  the  type,  and  the  jar  of  starting 


SOME  SPECIAL  TROUBLES  27 

them  suddenly  fills  up  the  edges  of  the  form  with  ink, 
and  often  cuts  the  rollers.  Bearers  should  be  smooth 
and  never  above  type-high,  with  no  sharp  corners  to  cut 
rollers.  They  should  be  locked  at  the  extreme  ends  of 
the  chase,  and  t'ympan  should  not  extend  so  as  to  touch 
them.  They  should  be  cleaned  as  carefully  as  the 
form.  Metal  ones  are  best,  as  they  are  easier  to  clean 
and  are  more  accurate. 

SOME  SPECIAL  TROUBLES. 

In  concluding  these  papers,  I  wish  to  speak  of  some 
special  matters.  First,  one  of  the  pressman’s  greatest 
trials,  slurring. 

The  primary  cause  of  this  is  always  a  movement  of 
the  sheet  in  contact  with  the  type,  either  just  at  the  time 
of,  just  before,  or  just  after,  the  moment  of  impression. 
If  the  tympan  is  absolutely  taut,  if  the  sheet  to  be 
printed  lies  perfectly  flat  upon  it  and  is  held  so  during 
the  impression,  and  the  form  is  impressed  against  it 
firmly  without  any  spring  in  any  portion  of  the  form, 
and  without  any  side  motion,  and  then  leaves  the  sheet 
clean,  there  can  be  no  slur  possible.  Slurring  is  always 
caused  by  a  violation  of  some  one  of  these  ideal  condi¬ 
tions.  Technically  speaking,  it  is  practically  never 
caused  by  the  ink,  but  it  is  true  that  there  are  many 
kinds  of  stock  very  difficult  to  make  lie  absolutely  flat 
on  the  tympan,  and  often  such  stock  will  not  show  a 
slur  when  stiff  ink  is  used,  but  will  if  the  ink  is  very 
thin.  It  is,  therefore,  advisable  to  use  inks  that  are 
fairly  stiff  on  stock  that  does  not  lie  flat.  The  indi- 


2  8 


PLATEN  PRESSWORK 


vidua!  causes  of  slurring  are  many.  If  the  slur  is  made 
just  before  t’he  point  of  impression,  it  is  because  the 
stock  does  not  lie  flat  and  bulges  against  the  type,  and, 
as  the  gradually  increasing  pressure  forces  it  flat,  there 
is  a  slight  motion  of  the  sheet  that  makes  the  slur. 
Anything  that  will  hold  the  sheet  flat  on  the  tympan 
will  stop  the  slur.  Extra  gripping-fingers  on  the  inner 
margins,  strings  across  the  grippers  over  the  place 
where  the  bulge  comes,  if  at  the  left  end  of  the  sheet  a 
cardboard  glued  in  the  margin  of  the  tympan  and 
extending  over  as  close  as  possible  to  the  point  where 
the  slur  shows,  or  a  piece  of  pressboard  glued  to  the 
gripping-fingers  and  extending  into  the  troubled  spot, 
all  are  schemes  used  with  more  or  less  success,  accord¬ 
ing  to  circumstances. 

If  the  slur  comes  on  the  impression,  which  is  rare, 
it  is  either  the  result  of  an  uneven  setting  of  the  impres¬ 
sion-screws,  or  a  badly  worn  press.  The  former  can 
readily  be  remedied.  The  latter  can  only  be  helped  by 
the  use  of  impression-bearers.  A  form  poorly  locked 
up  may  bulge  and  cause  a  slur  at  each  impression  as  it 
is  forced  back  against  the  bed.  In  that  case  send  it 
back  t'o  the  composing-room. 

If  the  slur  is  caused  when  the  sheet  leaves  the  type, 
it  is  probably  because  the  grippers  have  not  sufficient 
hold  to  pull  the  sheet  away  all  at  once,  and  it  somewhat 
half  pulls  and  half  peels  off  with  a  dragging  motion 
that  brings  the  slur.  Fine  sandpaper,  glued  sand-side 
up  on  the  tympan  under  where  the  grippers  touch  the 
sheet,  will  increase  their  hold.  Strings  through  the 
margins,  and  pieces  of  cardboard  glued  to  the  tympan 


SOME  SPECIAL  TROUBLES 


29 


and  extending  into  open  portions  of  printing  are  the 
most-used  expedients. 

If  the  ink  is  very  stiff,  thinning  it  will  make  the 
paper  leave  the  form  easier  and  thereby  tend  to  prevent 
the  slur,  but  care  must  be  taken  not  to  get  it  too  thin, 
especially  if  the  stock  is  at  all  inclined  to  bulge. 

Type  that  is  badly  filled  up  with  old,  dried  ink  will 
frequently  give  the  appearance  of  a  slur,  the  accumu¬ 
lated  ink  in  and  around  the  letters  receiving  fresh  ink 
from  the  rollers  and  in  turn  leaving  some  of  it  on  the 
printed  sheet.  The  very  first  thing  to  do,  in  making 
ready  such  a  form,  is  to  clean  it  thoroughly  with  good 
lye. 

The  filling  up  of  cuts  and  shaded  type  is  a  source 
of  constant  aggravation.  The  most  common  causes 
are,  poor  cleaning  of  the  press,  gritty  or  skinny  ink,  too 
much  impression,  too  soft  a  tympan ;  and  last,  but  not 
least,  cut  up  rollers,  from  the  cracks  in  which  little 
particles  of  roller-composition  are  constantly  working 
into  the  ink  and  thence  into  the  cuts.  The  remedies  for 
each  of  these  causes  are  self-evident.  It  may  be  well, 
however,  to  say  that  even  with  good  rollers,  good  ink 
and  the  greatest  care,  it  is  still  good  practice  to  clean 
out  half-tone  forms  every  one  or  two  thousand  impres¬ 
sions,  if  clear,  sharp  work  is  desired. 

Cuts  are  sometimes  filled  with  old  dried  ink  which 
will  not  come  off  with  lye,  benzine,  etc.,  and  which, 
especially  in  half-tones,  gives  the  plate  a  dull,  muddy  or 
worn-out  appearance.  If  such  cuts  can  not  be  cleaned 
with  the  ordinary  materials,  use  alcohol  in  which  has 
been  dissolved  as  much  as  it  will  hold  of  white  caustic 


30 


PLATEN  PRESSWORK 


potash.  Do  not  scrub  with  it  as  with  lye,  but  simply 
float  enough  over  the  cut’  to  cover  the  surface  of  it,  and 
after  a  minute  or  two,  clean  it  off.  It  is  enormously 
powerful  in  removing  ink  but  will  not  injure  type  or 
cuts  if  used  as  above. 

Offset  on  the  tympan,  when  working  the  second 
side  of  a  job,  can  usually  be  prevented  by  rubbing  the 
tympan  with  a  little  kerosene  or  machine  oil.  If  the 
sheets  offset  on  each  other  as  they  come  from  the  press, 
it  may  be  there  is  too  much  ink  on  the  job.  If  the 
work  is  such  that  the  color  can  not  be  kept  up  bright 
and  clear  without  offset,  it  should  be  slip-sheeted. 

Never  take  an  impression  immediately  after  a  form 
has  been  put  in  the  press  without  looking  carefully  to 
see  that  the  grippers  will  not  strike  the  type.  Even 
if  the  form  has  been  removed  to  make  but  a  trifling 
correction,  watch  the  grippers  when  you  run  the  press 
down  first  time.  It  is  a  matter  that  you  can  not  be  too 
sure  about. 

Good  presswork  makes  or  mars  the  whole  product 
of  every  shop.  The  good  pressman  is  the  one  who 
works  rapidly  and  intelligently,  but  with  infinite  pains, 
and  who  does  not  relax  his  vigilance  with  the  comple¬ 
tion  of  the  original  make-ready,  but  maintains  it  until 
the  run  is  finished. 


New  Edition  of 


PRESSWORK 


Now  Ready! 


PRESSWORK,  by  William  J.  Kelly,  is  the 
only  complete  and  authentic  work  on  this 
subject  ever  published.  The  book  is  a 
manual  of  practice  for  printing  pressmen  and 
pressroom  apprentices — a  comprehensive  treatise 
on  presswork,  reprinted  from  a  series  of  articles 
which  appeared  in  The  Inland  Printer,  care¬ 
fully  revised  and  corrected  and  added  to  by  the 
author.  Its  chapters  include:  At  Hand  Press — 
Making  Ready — Methods  of  Applying  Under¬ 
lays — Underlaying  Small  and  Large  Sections — 
The  Cut-out  Underlay — Preliminaries  to  Over¬ 
laying — Packing  the  Cylinder — Modifications  in 
Hard  Packing  —  Amending  the  Make-up  of 
Tympans — Tympan  for  Quick  Jobwork  — 
Tympans  for  Newspaper  Work — Overlaying — 
Preparations  Necesary  to  Making  Overlays — 
Opinions  on  Overlaying  Compared — Summary 
of  Useful  Hints — Inks.  The  new  edition  con¬ 
tains  Forms  of  Imposition  and  Addenda — “Lit¬ 
tle  Grains  of  Knowledge, ”  worth  more  than  the 
price  of  the  book.  Full  Cloth,  140  pages,  $1.50 
postpaid. 


THE  INLAND  PRINTER  CO. 

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NEW  YORK  CHICAGO 


TELLS  ALL  ABOUT  EMBOSSING 

Practical  Guide  to 

EMBOSSING 

How  to  Do  It  on  an  ordinary  Job  Press 

aJ^HE  above  is  the  title  of  a  new  edition  of 
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I  2  O  -  1 3  O  Sherman  Street ,  Chicago 


